Gran Turismo: Which Spice Girl Is A Part Of The Cast?

"Gran Turismo" isn't an average video game movie. It's based on true events following Jann Mardenborough (Archie Madekwe), who used his experience playing the "Gran Turismo" video games to excel at GT Academy and ultimately become a professional racecar driver. Madekwe is supported by a stellar cast, including the likes of David Harbour, Orlando Bloom, and Djimon Hounsou. But one cast member may look familiar if you were a fan of '90s girl groups. 

Geri Halliwell, better known as Ginger Spice from the Spice Girls, plays Lesley Mardenborough, Jann's mother, in the film. Naturally, the Spice Girls are the best-selling female music group ever, but Halliwell left in 1998. She pursued a solo career, which resulted in some hit singles that charted in the United Kingdom, but she rejoined the Spice Girls when they got back together in 2007.

While much of her filmography involves playing herself or being a judge on reality shows, she does have some film credits to her name prior to "Gran Turismo." Plenty of '90s kids likely consumed "Spice World" when it came out in 1997 and still hold out hope for "Spice World 2." Over a decade later, she'd appear in a very different film — "Crank: High Voltage." But there's likely a good reason why she wanted to join the cast of "Gran Turismo."

While Geri Halliwell has starred in some movies before, it is a bit rare for her. When asked about joining the cast of "Gran Turismo" by Metro, she explained, "The script of 'Gran Turismo' from the beginning was fantastic. It's a really great story, and it's inspiring; it's real. You know, it's action, but it's unairbrushed, and there's a huge amount of heart." However, it'd be remiss to fail to point out that Halliwell has been married to former racing driver Christian Horner since 2015. 

He's won 11 world titles, which include six World Drivers' Championships and five World Constructors' Championships. Even though he began as a driver, he switched to becoming head of the International Formula 3000 team Arden International Motorsport. He comes from a family with a history in the automotive industry, which suited Halliwell just fine as she's always been drawn to cars. Halliwell was also interviewed by Fandango about her history with racing. She stated, "I've always loved cars. My father was a second-hand car dealer, and so I was always taken to like racing. And so I've always had that love for it."

There's no word on what Halliwell's next cinematic project might be. In 2019, there were reports an animated Spice Girls movie was in the works, but it sounds like it's since been shelved indefinitely. Spice Girls fans can now see Halliwell in "Gran Turismo," playing in theaters.